It Was Easy

Q and Not U drummer John Davis, formerly of Georgie James, continues the latter band's power-pop lean with his new project.

While all three members of Q and Not U formed different projects after their breakup five years ago, the ensuing career of their drummer, John Davis, might be the biggest and most pleasant surprise. He's continued to record smart, affable power pop-- one record as the frontman of the band Georgie James, and now recording most everything himself under the name Title Tracks. If It Was Easy, his first full-length under the name, is any indication, it seems he's just getting started.

The record begins with his 2009 debut single, "Every Little Bit Hurts", which is a fine place to start: With just Davis' voice and guitar (and barely any drums at all), "Every Little Bit Hurts" is as unassuming as it is infectious, burrowing into the brain on the strength of just a few chords. If you thought Ted Leo's mostly-solo Tell Balgeary, Balgury Is Dead EP should have been longer, this is a jam you need to hear.

But while Davis proves himself worthy as a one-man studio band, the record still seems sparse and somewhat bare. Most of the time, that works in his favor. Take his cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Tougher Than the Rest", re-imagined here as a Casio keyboard-led lullaby sung as a duet with Camera Obscura's Tracyanne Campbell. It's a departure for Davis, but is also a fine example of his ability to do less with more. (Granted, having a voice like Campbell's to assist you goes a long way; Camera Obscura recently released their own version of "Tougher" as a B-side to a recent single). On other songs, little details add up, sometimes changing the whole tone and feel of a track. The lazy skank of "No, Girl" opens with a surprising saxophone riff courtesy of Kriston Capps. And on "Hello There", dance-informed rhythms appear, lending the verses a syncopated buoyancy before a gentler, strummier B-section takes it somewhere else entirely.

The faster pace of tracks like "Every Little Bit Hurts" or "Steady Love", with their mouthful of syllables and quick phrasing, suit Davis' strengths. While he's a capable vocalist, it would take a voice with a lot of character to really sell tracks like the saccharine commercial jingle-like "Black Bubblegum" or the whisper-level intimacy of "At Fifteen". Davis has crafted a careful and infectious power-pop record on his own that's easy to love (especially for fans of the aforementioned Ted Leo or the New Pornographers). But while he's done the full-band frontman thing before in Georgie James, he might take Title Tracks even further if he pulls in some more helping hands with more of the canny decision-making he's made here.